Hilltop Manor Convalescent in Auburn, CA

Pros

• The facility is praised for its caring, professional nursing staff.
• Blanca Harvey is celebrated for having a heart of gold and patient demeanor.
• The PT/OT team is described as awesome and instrumental in getting patients back on their feet.
• The gardens are lovely, and the nursing staff is attentive and genuinely caring.
• The facility is clean and well maintained, with good food options.
• Residents and their families feel supported by discharge planners and therapy teams who go the extra mile.
• Graciela, a nurse, is highlighted for her professionalism and compassionate care.

Cons

• The facility makes it impossible to reach a real person on the phone.
• The front desk is often empty and staff seem distracted by personal calls.
• The room was appalling, with cold food, trash, and a nonfunctional thermostat.
• The staff were inattentive and negligent, with some being rude or disrespectful.
• The director of nursing should not be trusted.
• The facility is severely understaffed, compromising patient care.
• Medications were sometimes given late, early, or not at all.
• Personal items were stolen or misplaced and not replaced.
• The facility was dirty and poorly maintained.

Review

Hilltop Manor Convalescent in Auburn is best suited for families that can actively oversee care during short-term rehabilitation or hospice transitions and value genuinely compassionate bedside attention. The reviews reveal a facility capable of delivering extraordinary warmth and dignity when the right staff are on duty - especially in end-of-life scenarios where families felt welcomed and cared for. The building is older and busy, and staffing can dip at times, but when care teams align, residents receive attentive, individualized care and meaningful interaction. For residents with long-term, complex needs or memory-care challenges, this environment demands vigilant family involvement and close oversight, which makes some families seek alternatives with steadier staffing and more consistent communication.

Alternatives should be considered for families prioritizing consistent communication, reliable front-desk access, and steady day-to-day operations. The recurring difficulty in reaching a live person by phone, occasional front-desk curt responses, and variable call-light responsiveness signal a risk for ongoing gaps if family oversight is limited. Facilities with proven records of stable administration, transparent handling of incidents, and dependable med administration timing are worth evaluating. For memory care or residents requiring around-the-clock monitoring, Hilltop Manor's staffing variability could translate into unsafe or unsettling experiences, especially when family members cannot verify who is on duty or readily reach staff. In short: this is a facility to scrutinize carefully against solid, consistently run alternatives.

On the positive side, several reviews highlight genuinely caring nurses and strong rehabilitation signals. Multiple residents and families praise the therapy teams, with reports of effective physical and occupational therapy and progress toward mobility goals. The setting includes clean spaces, functional therapy rooms, and an atmosphere where activity staff and providers make residents feel valued. Individual caregivers receive high praise, with some staff singled out for kindness and professionalism. For families seeking aggressive rehab to restore function, or hospice guests who require humane, respectful bedside care, these strengths can translate into real benefits. The challenge lies in ensuring those strengths are the norm rather than isolated bright spots.

Yet the downsides recur with notable frequency. Staffing variability, inattentive or rude interactions, and inconsistent call-light response times appear across multiple reviews. There are reports of late or missed medication administration, lapses in routine monitoring, and maintenance or cleanliness concerns in some rooms. Administrative communication can be opaque, and several families say they feel unheard or pressured during care decisions. Theft concerns and distrust of leadership surface in various accounts, underscoring a broader need for stronger accountability. Rebranding to Westview Healthcare and ongoing management turnover add to confusion about policies and what residents should receive. Taken together, these factors erode confidence when long-term stability and predictable routines matter most.

When the right staff alignment occurs - the therapists, nurses, and aides who show up consistently and communicate clearly - Hilltop Manor can deliver outcomes worthy of consideration. Rehab-focused stays can yield meaningful mobility gains, and hospice chapters can unfold with tenderness and respect for dignity. The facility's physical environment and program elements - strong PT/OT, clean spaces, and appealing dining options on some shifts - provide a solid platform. However, these advantages only offset the drawbacks when ongoing staffing reliability, accountable leadership, and transparent family communication are in place. Without that stability, even the best therapy or nicest rooms struggle to compensate for missed meds, delayed help, or unclear notification around changes in a resident's condition.

The practical conclusion is to approach Hilltop Manor with a plan: tour with a checklist, request conversations with the director of nursing and shift supervisors, and observe how quickly staff respond to call lights at different times of day. Confirm current ownership status and ask for recent, concrete examples of problem resolution and staff training. For families choosing long-term memory care or seeking steady, low-frustration operation, exploring alternatives with stronger front-door access, predictable staffing, and robust family communications is prudent. For those pursuing short-term rehabilitation or hospice care, Hilltop Manor can be workable, but only with vigilant oversight, explicit expectations set in writing, and a clear care plan that holds the facility accountable for consistency and safety.

Restaurants

• El Charro Market (0.3 miles)
• Taco Tree (0.4 miles)
• Wendy's (0.8 miles)
• Applebee's (0.8 miles)
• Knee Deep Brewing Company Tap Room (0.8 miles)
• McDonald's (0.8 miles)
• Pho King Good (2 miles)

Parks

• Auburn Regional Park (0.6 miles)
• Ashley Memorial Dog Park (2.9 miles)
• Auburn State Recreation Area (4 miles)
• Boulder Ridge Park (10.8 miles)
• McBean Memorial Park (11.2 miles)
• Breen Park (12.8 miles)
• Johnson-Springview Park (14 miles)

Physicians

• Brian K. Kim, M.D., FACP (0.6 miles)
• Sutter Occupational Health Services (0.6 miles)
• Attia Abbasi, M.D., FAAP (0.6 miles)
• Gregory T. Lichtman, DO (0.6 miles)
• Jeffrey Bergeson, DO (0.7 miles)
• Northcal Hematology Oncology (0.7 miles)
• Auburn Bone and Joint Orthopaedic Clinic (0.8 miles)

Pharmacies

• Gold Country Compoundi (0.9 miles)
• Bel Air Pharmacy (1.3 miles)
• Rite Aid (3.5 miles)
• Save Mart Supermarkets (3.5 miles)
• Longs Drugs (3.6 miles)
• CVS Pharmacy (3.6 miles)
• Sierra Compounding Pharmacy (5.5 miles)

Hospitals

• Siena Care Center (0.9 miles)

Cafes

• Starbucks (2.9 miles)
• Starbucks (3 miles)
• Dutch Bros Coffee (3.6 miles)
• Starbucks (3.6 miles)
• The Pour Choice (4.2 miles)
• North Fork Chai (6 miles)
• Starbucks (6.1 miles)

Theaters

• Regal Auburn - California (2.9 miles)
• SMG Rocklin (12.2 miles)

Transportation

• Colfax Train Station (12.6 miles)